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Updated at 5:45 a.m. to include feature story on the Governor's State of the State Address by Marshall Griffin.
Governor Jay Nixon (D) pitched a $25.7 billion budget to the state of Missouri during Monday's State of the State Address. It includes spending increases for K-12 schools, Higher Education, and the proposed Medicaid expansion he's been calling for since late November. St. Louis Public Radio's Marshall Griffin takes a closer look at the Governor's speech and his proposed spending plan for next year:
Nixon calls for $150 million increase in education spending
Governor Nixon has been criticized over the past two years for cuts to Missouri's universities and colleges, including a $9 million cut last year. But this year's about-face is based on positive estimates of the state's revenue growth. Nixon told lawmakers he wants to increase education spending by $150 million.
"That's $17 million more for early childhood education, that's $34 million more for Higher Education, and that's $100 million more for our K-12 classrooms!"
The Governor also talked about the length of Missouri's school year, which he says is too short, and called on lawmakers to add six days to the public school year. The $34 million increase to Higher Education would also come with some conditions – Nixon endorsed tying funding to performance standards, including increased student retention and graduation rates.
Medicaid expansion
The Governor spent nearly eight minutes talking about Medicaid – as expected, he called for expanding Medicaid to an additional 300,000 Missourians, 259,000 in the next Fiscal Year, and the rest in the coming years:
"Will we let the tax dollars that Missourians send to Washington be spent in other states instead? The people of Missouri deserve to see their tax dollars come back to their communities."
Democratic lawmakers gave him several standing ovations during the Medicaid portion of the address, while the GOP majority mostly remained quiet, save for a few groans and chuckles. Nixon acknowledged their skepticism:
"Now I know there are some who have voiced concern that Washington will not live up to its commitment (applause)…let me address that directly (laughter)…I support including a provision that rolls back the Medicaid expansion if Washington doesn't honor its financial commitment." (applause)
The Republican Response
But even that revelation didn't mollify the GOP's opposition to the Governor's Medicaid expansion plans. House Speaker Tim Jones (R, Eureka) delivered the Republican Response immediately after the Governor's address:
"We have a Governor and a federal government that believes bigger government is the answer…they want to take us down a fiscally irresponsible path that will saddle future generations of Missourians with a bill they cannot afford…it's a path Republicans will not follow."
Jones said that Governor Nixon has ignored the state's real medical crisis – the Missouri Supreme Court's decision to get rid of caps on medical malpractice damage awards. Jones also attacked the Governor's track record on education spending, specifically his $9 million cut to Higher Ed last year:
"And yet despite his claims that these cuts had to be made to balance the budget, he was able to find nearly $6 million of your tax money to buy a brand new plane."
Nixon will pursue restoring campaign contribution limits
On the topic of ethics reform, Governor Nixon in recent years has called on Republican lawmakers to join Democrats in restoring campaign contribution limits, a call that's gone unanswered each year. This time, he took a hard-line approach:
"If the legislature does not send a campaign contribution limit bill to my desk, I will do everything within my power to get it on the ballot and make sure it passes." (applause)
After the address, Jones called the Governor's tone on campaign contribution limits too strong, and Speaker Pro-tem Jason Smith (R, Salem) in effect called Nixon a hypocrite for accepting donations much higher than the cap that used to exist. Governor Nixon also announced plans to cut 190 state jobs, which would include some layoffs – and he unveiled four proposed bond issues that would fund improvements to K-12 schools, college campuses, state parks, and the state's mental hospital at Fulton. Nixon says they would be paid for by reforming Missouri's system of tax credits. Lawmakers have until early May to pass the state budget.
Updated following the conclusion of the address and response 8:25 p.m. Subject to additional updates.
Mo. Gov. Jay Nixon gave his annual State of the State address tonight - touching on several of the topics we expected he would. House Speaker Tim Jones then delivered the Republican response. Here's an initial breakdown, by topic, of what was said:
- Full text of Nixon's address can be found here, and Jones' response here.
- A significant portion of Nixon's address - Nixon framed Medicaid expansion as an economic issue. "Strengthening Medicaid will strengthen our economy. Without question, it's the smart thing to do."
- Nixon also addressed that if Washington doesn't hold up its financial commitment, he supports a provision that "rolls back the Medicaid expansion."
- Jones called Medicaid expansion a "ploy" from Washington that "forced the hand" of states like Missouri.
- Nixon proposed an increase in education funding of $150 million - itemized to go toward early childhood education ($17 million), higher education ($34 million) and K-12 classrooms ($100 million).
- Nixon shared that Missouri's graduation rate is now the 7th highest in the nation.
- Western Governor's University - Missouri was announced - Nixon called it a "a nonprofit institution that offers bachelors and masters degrees in four areas Missouri's employers are looking for: business, health care, teacher preparation and information technology."
- Jones said that he found common ground with Nixon on education reform and that "Education cannot just begin and end at the schoolhouse door."
- See also: Bonds and "BOOST program"
Mental Health:
- Nixon announced $10 million toward mental health services.
Jones approached the topic by saying that the "solution to prevent such tragedies (Sandy Hook massacre) from happening again in the future does not involve trampling on the Second Amendment rights of our citizens.Instead, we must place an emphasis on creating a mental health system that makes care accessible and effective, so that those who might do us harm have the opportunity to receive the kind of help that can put them on a path to triumph rather than tragedy."
Domestic Violence:
- Nixon proposed a 29 percent increase in funding for domestic violence programs and facilities.
- Jones did not address the topic in his response.
Bonds & Tax Credit Reform:
- Nixon proposed the "BOOST Fund" - stands for "Building Opportunities in Our Schools Today."
- Also proposed bond issuance for Fulton State Mental Hospital and the refurbishing of state parks and elements of tourism.
- Proposed paying for bond system with tax credit reform.
Jones addressed tax credit reform by saying: "We also believe it is important to review the effectiveness of our existing state programs, including Missouri's 61 tax credit programs.Many of these programs accomplish a worthwhile goal, but oversight and accountability are required."
Campaign Contributions:
- Nixon called "unlimited sums of money pouring into the campaign accounts of candidates seeking office" "the single most destructive force to our system."
- Nixon said that if the legislature doesn't send him a campaign contribution limit bill to his desk, he would do "everything in [his] power" to get it on the ballot and make sure it passes.
- Jones did not address this topic in his response.
Transportation & Infrastructure:
- Nixon did not address transportation in his address.
- Jones said: "Areas like the critical task of improving our state's aging and failing infrastructure. We must work together to make sure our roads and bridges, the essential transportation routes vital to economic development, are maintained, repaired and, when necessary, rebuilt."
Medical Malpractice Lawsuits:
- Nixon did not address this topic.
- Jones spent a considerable portion of his response on the topic and called it one of his "top priorities." He called for reform of the malpractice system so we "can close the floodgate of lawsuits that threaten to drive the cost of medical malpractice insurance through the roof and, of course, increase the cost of care."
Our original post for your reference:
Tonight, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon delivers his annual "State of the State" address - and the Republicans will give their response. Not only will we be broadcasting both of these events live starting at 7 p.m. but we also open up our live chat to you.
Pose a question, share a comment, challenge a point. It's all up to you.
Join us on-air at 90.7 FM (or streaming live online/mobile) and bring all of your thoughts here to our live chat (below). See you here tonight!
What's Gov. Nixon expected to speak about tonight? Check out our preview of the address here.
As you might expect, lawmakers are hoping that the governor will address areas specific to their constituents' needs. Democratic Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal of University City hopes Nixon's proposed budget will not overlook the needs of women and minority small business owners.
"For the last 16 years, we have not had a disparity study, so there are many minority and women-owned businesses that are out there right now who are not getting the benefit of being able to contract with the state," Chappelle-Nadal said.
Chappelle-Nadal also commended the Governor for his pursuit of Medicaid expansion. Some Republican lawmakers, meanwhile, say they'll carefully examine any budget cuts the Governor may propose, in light of last week's revelation that the Missouri Highway Patrol spent more than $5.5 million on a new airplane to transport the Governor and other elected officials around the state.
And, here's House Speaker Tim Jones' preview of the address (from Jan. 23). Jones will give the Republican response tonight:


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President Barack Obama says the death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy for America. Obama says he knows the not-guilty verdict reached late Saturday has elicited strong passions around the country. In a statement released Sunday, Obama is asking that all Americans respect the call for calm reflection. There have been a number of rallies and protests, most of which have been peaceful. Obama says Americans should ask themselves if they're doing all they can to stem gun violence, and what can be done to prevent future tragedies like the Florida shooting.
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[This article was published on March 14th on the Guardian's Comment is Free.]
Forecasts for the UK economy are grim. The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicts that, on current policies, output won't recover to its pre-crisis level until perhaps 2014 – no growth over six years. This will make this recovery far slower than that following the Great Depression, as shown in the National Institute of Economic and Social Research's famous chart here. Moreover, even in 2015,unemployment will still be well over 2 million.
What do policymakers propose to do about this? Not a lot. Remember, these are the official forecasts, taking account of policy. So instead of taking any substantive action, the rhetoric is of the inevitability of a slow recovery. The governor of the Bank of England says that "the path of recovery is likely to be arduous, long and uneven." Nick Clegg, using a similar metaphor, talked about a "long, hard, road ahead".
But this isn't about roads, it's about people. Unemployment, especially youth unemployment, has "scarring" effects; an individual experiencing a spell of unemployment earns less and is more likely to be out of work later in life. And already, unemployment is becoming entrenched: jobseeker's allowance is supposed to be, and until recently largely was, a short-term benefit for those who should be able to find work quickly. But the number claiming for more than a year has been shooting up – for young people, it has doubled. The long-term damage this will do to the UK economy and society is immense.
This economic masochism is unnecessary and damaging. The underlying health of the UK economy is much better than the forecasts suggest; and the scope for action is considerably greater. Over the past two decades – up to and including the recession – productivity grew faster in the UK than in any other G7 economy. While a small part of that reflects the growth of the financial sector, most was due to improvements in the UK labour market, a higher skilled workforce, and a more competitive economy. But the OBR is arguing that over the next two years, potential productivity will only grow at about half that rate, and that we will make up little or none of the output lost in the recession. This is a self-fulfilling prophecy: if we believe it, it will be true. But it doesn't have to be.
So what can and should the chancellor do in the budget? The first thing he should do is to explicitly disavow the pessimism of the OBR and the Bank of England about the potential of the UK economy to grow and create jobs without generating inflation. Of course, the chancellor must accept the OBR's verdict on the arithmetic. But that doesn't mean he should accept their growth pessimism. He should state explicitly that he does not accept that we are doomed to slow growth, or to unnecessarily high unemployment for the indefinite future – and that he intends to put us on a different track.
Three relatively straightforward measures could make a real difference. First, he should introduce a tax cut that would help low-paid workers and create jobs. A genuine stimulus would be, as the IFS has said: "Timely, targeted and temporary." Raising personal allowances, still less tinkering with the 50p rate or the pension contributions of the better-off, are not. An obvious candidate would be a large cut in national insurance contributions for young and low-paid workers, which could satisfy all three conditions (reintroducing the educational maintenance allowance, abolished at the wrong time for the wrong reasons, would also help).
Second, with long-term interest rates at historic lows, there has never been a better time to invest in Britain's creaking infrastructure. In thespending review, capital spending – as always – suffered most, with many projects assessed as having long-term benefits cancelled. All the Treasury needs to do is take them down off the shelf.
Third, the UK suffers from a structural shortage of housing supply. This has a number of economic impacts – none of them good. It pushes up prices, redistributes wealth from the poor and young to the old and rich, and reduces both labour mobility in the short term and social mobility in the long term. Both this government and the previous one tried to boost demand for housing through stamp duty holidays and other subsidies; this is precisely the wrong way round. Far better would be to subsidise house-building by helping social-housing providers to borrow and build.
But wouldn't all this run up against the OBR's arithmetic? The short answer is, no. The government's primary fiscal target is to balance the cyclically adjusted current budget five years in the future. So neither a genuinely "timely, targeted and temporary" tax cut, or an increase in capital spending, have any direct impact at all on the target. The chancellor cannot hide behind either his own targets or the OBR as an excuse for inaction.
In 1925, Winston Churchill expressed his dismay that policymakers seemed to be "perfectly happy with the spectacle of Britain possessing the finest credit in the world simultaneously with a million and a quarter unemployed". There is no need for us to make the same mistake.


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About This Quiz
Can you dig it? How well do you remember the '70s? You might be down with Roller Skating and the Bay City Rollers. You might even have some awesome feathered hair, but are you up on '70s slang?
Every decade has its slang, but was there ever a time that there was slang that was such a perfect combination of cool and ridiculous as the '70s? In this decade, you could chillax and hang out at your crib or you could just tell your roomie that you were going to catch him on the flip side and head on out for a bangin' time. Although if you decide to book it down the street in your car on the way home, then you would have to make sure you didn't bump into Smokey.
If you have a pretty good idea of what we're talking about, then you're probably going to do ace on this quiz. But if you don't, then the whole thing was probably bunk anyway. Take this quiz and prove to us what an expert you are in '70s slang. May the force be with you. If you do well on the quiz, you get a Hertz Donut, and that's no jive.
When you were young, chances are you spent pretty much all of your time hanging out in your crib. In slang terms, a "crib" is someone's house or apartment, where they spend all their time.
The slang word, "spaz," is a take on "spastic." Since spastic means to lose physical or emotional control, you know that if you're acting like a so-called spaz, it isn't a good thing. Today, this word is considered an ableist slur, a discrimination against people with disabilities.
If you "dig" something, it means you're getting into it, digging away so to speak. So if someone asks you if you can dig something, they just want to know if you get it or understand it.
When someone is "the man," they're always someone is some type of authority. It's the type of thing where you might feel you were trying to get ahead in life, but "the man" is always holding you down.
Some say this slang term comes from people studying hard and hitting the books, others suggest it comes from the '70s slang term, "boogie." Either way, it means someone doing something fast.
"Bangin' has a couple of meanings and both of them are good. It could refer to someone's body, saying that it's attractive, or it could also mean that something, like a party, is really exciting.
Some of these phrases are more confusing than others. Doing something to "the max" just means that you're giving it your maximum effort. The slang term is just a cooler version of "the best."
If you are having some mental issues, you might go to a psychologist, which is the point of this slang term. If someone says "psych" to you, they're getting into your mind, or at least trying to.
If someone says you're an "airhead," what is being implied is that your head is full of air. As you might imagine, this wasn't considered a compliment when it came to slang in the '70s.
An ace is the very best card in the deck that one can get in a variety of games. This expression means the same thing. Something that is "ace" is really good or the very best there is.
People were really into their cars in the '70s. An Audi 5000 was thought of as a really fast car so, what was being said when someone was "Audi 5000" was that they were leaving fast.
The act of blowing something off means to ignore it, not pay it any attention, or not attend something. You might have had a date with someone but if you didn't go, "you blew off" the date.
This is the kind of slang expression that confuses some people. Just like something "bad" can be really good, something that is "sick" can be really awesome. If you're confused it's OK.
When someone asks you what the "skinny" is, they're asking you to get right to the point. Skinny is the opposite of fat, which means that you're going to cut the fat and get right to it.
While the word "bomb" isn't always one that is cool, in '70s slang it is. The word first became known in this manner in U.K. theater in the '50s when a play that was "the bomb" did very well.
It might be hard to imagine, but in the '70s, there was no Internet and no smartphones so, television was incredibly popular. Watching the "Boob Tube" was slang for watching television.
Back in the old days, life was pretty simple and one needed actual bread to survive. In the '70s, as well as today, "bread" became a term that was used for money, which you also need to survive.
The slang words, "far out," have been said since the days of jazz, but hippies in the '60s said it a lot too. By the '70s, the phrase was being used not just by hippies, but by all sorts of cultural groups.
Whether you like your boss or whether you don't, there is no doubt that he or she has power. If something was "boss," it was outstanding.
When you say "In your face" to someone, you're definitely taunting them and being aggressive. Think of a game of basketball when someone is guarding you closely, but you score anyway.
There were a lot of popular movies back then, like "Convoy" or "Smokey and the Bandit," that used a lot of trucker slang that became common. In trucker slang, "Smokey" is a police officer.
If you want your car to look newer and cleaner, or you want your floors to shine, you might choose to buff them. The word "buff," in slang, means something that looks good. It can also refer to someone who has well-defined muscles.
The term "brick house" refers to someone who is built really well. This comes from when the Big Bad Wolf tried to blow down the house that one of the three little pigs made with brick. He couldn't.
This slang term was another that began with jazz musicians when they started calling people they liked "cool cats." This one makes sense because, come on, cats are totally cool!
To be "chill" is to be cool in a way that shows you aren't worked up at all, and we all know what the word "relax" means. This slang term means you're relaxing in a super cool way.
Many people say this term was coined by comedian Steve Martin who came to fame in the '70s. The word means that everything is cool and safe and there's nothing to worry about.
This word was used a lot in the '70s to describe the police. It was especially used by hippies. The origin appears to be from the police in England who wear hats with a bit of a fuzzy look to them.
This is yet another slang term that started with jazz musicians who used the term "gig" as a shortened version of "engagement." It was used often during the '70s for any obligation, such as a job, one had to fulfill.
Some of the slang in the '70s was pretty simple. This phrase "freaky deaky" is just rhyming slang, using one word that means something with another that means nothing but rhymes, just for fun.
If you're having a nice turkey dinner, it's good all on its own, but it's even better if you pour some gravy on it. In slang "terms," gravy is something that is good and also a bit extra special.
Since the 1800s, "Bunk" has been used to mean something is nonsense or doesn't work. But, as far as slang goes, it wasn't until the '70s that this word became popular.
"Gnarly" comes from "gnarl," which means "knotted and rugged." This is a tough one because it can mean something that is really awesome or something that is really bad.
This slang term is named for the actor, Humphrey Bogart. If you were sharing a pizza but kept most of the pieces to yourself, someone might say, "Hey, man, don't Bogart that pizza."
This is a phrase of encouragement meaning that someone should keep doing what they're doing. It originally is a phrase from the 1930s' song, "Trucking My Blues Away" by Blind Boy Fuller.
It's hard to tell exactly where this slang term came from, but one thing is for sure, it isn't positive. If someone is giving you a "hairy eyeball," it means they're glaring at you.


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More than forty years after the arrival of the original Datsun 240Z, the Z remains one of the best-selling sports cars in North America, as well as one of the best performance values. Totally redesigned for the 2009 model year, the iconic Z remains true to the original concept of combining style, performance and true sports car exhilaration in a package that is affordable to buy and holds its value over the period of ownership.
The 370Z Coupe is offered in two models for 2011, 370Z and 370Z Touring, each available with a standard 332-horsepower 3.7-liter DOHC V6 engine and choice of 6-speed manual transmission or a 7-speed automatic transmission. The changes for the 2011 370Z are limited to the addition of RearView Monitor to the optional Navigation Package and one new exterior color, Gun Metallic.
A Sculptural Yet Functional Exterior Design
The 2011 370Z Coupe's dynamic styling offers dual benefits – an aggressive appearance and a light, highly rigid structure for enhanced performance. The 370Z Coupe's 2nd generation FM platform provides a refined foundation for the well-proportioned body, with a 100.4-inch wheelbase, 167.2-inch overall length, 72.6-inch width and 51.8-inch height, giving it a classic sports car look and feel.
The Z® features aluminum door panels, along with an all-aluminum hood and an aluminum hatch. The body structure was extensively revised for this generation design, improving front body torsion rigidity by 30 percent and adding a front suspension cradle to help reduce front body lateral bending, rear structural reinforcements, and an underbody "V-bar" to help reduce rear lateral bending. The design also uses a carbon fiber composite radiator housing and strengthened rear fender and hatch areas.
The 370Z's taut exterior design incorporates intentional 240Z styling cues, a sleek aerodynamic shape, a "dynamic motion" feel with a dramatic cantilevered roof and a "low visual gravity." The sleek silhouette is defined by its upswept quarter window design that is echoed by the dynamic upward curvature in the lower rocker panel and the sense of the taut sheet metal molding itself around the wheels and frame.
Another distinctive feature of the bold exterior design is the headlight/taillight treatment, which features a fierce "boomerang" shape. High Intensity Discharge (HID) bi-functional xenon headlights with auto on/off feature are standard. The intense broad-shouldered rear shape is highlighted by the integration of the boomerang taillights and wide, flared rear fenders. Attention to detail and functionality is evident throughout the exterior design, including a flashing (repeater lamp) side marker lamp/emblem.
The coefficient of drag is 0.30 (0.29 with the Sport Package). The 370Z also provides zero front lift and zero rear lift when equipped with the rear spoiler, thanks to extensive aerodynamics efforts – including an "inverse area" front bumper design which smoothes the flow of air to the sides of the vehicle, while the rear design maximizes the control of air flow from the roof to the rear hatch.
Performance body pieces are available as part of the optional Sport Package, including a front chin spoiler and rear spoiler. The 2011 370Z is offered in seven exterior colors: Pearl White, Monterey Blue, Brilliant Silver, Magnetic Black, Solid Red, Gun Metallic and Black Cherry.
A Cockpit Equipped To Make Car and Driver Feel Like One
The interior of the 2011 370Z Coupe continues the Z® tradition of enhancing driving pleasure. The traditional 2-seat layout is built around a deeply scooped instrument panel with a full-length center console separating the driver and passenger's seat. In the rear is an open cargo area with ample storage and accessibility. The design focus incorporates a "layer concept," with an information layer, an operation layer and a holding layer.
The information layer provides good visibility with easy access to all key data. The gauges are attached to the steering column, so the driver doesn't have to choose between their preferred steering wheel position and visibility of the gauges. The large upper steering wheel opening in front of the gauges is designed to provide a good view of the readouts. The instrument panel retains the traditional 3-pod cluster with oil temperature, voltmeter and clock, while the speedometer and tachometer include an "initial sweep" function, coming alive when the Z® is first started.
The operation layer includes the steering wheel, shifter and switchgear. The steering wheel is an "oval" 3-spoke design, which offers baseball-style stitching and large thumb grips and palm rest areas for improved feel on long drives. The surface of the leather-wrapped wheel is "shaved" to provide a more kidney-like shape to better fit in the hand. The manual transmission shifter is padded in different areas to improve the accuracy of diagonal shifts and to feel softer in the hand for forward and backward motions.
The holding layer includes the seats, knee pads and door trim support. The driver's seat is uniquely different from the passenger's seat, with lower seat cushion cut-outs on the sides where the thighs rest – allowing the driver to push on the pedals without the seat fighting them. The seat frame is constructed to help hold the driver in place during cornering. Both the driver and passenger's seats are structured with an anti-slip material in the main seating surface. The sporty woven cloth seats feature standard 8-way driver's/4-way passenger manual adjustments, with heated 4-way power-adjustable leather-appointed seats standard with the 370Z Touring model. Adjustable front seat Active Head Restraints are also standard. The interior features standard Black cloth. Nissan 370Z Touring models include a choice of Gray, Black or Persimmon leather-appointed and synthetic suede seating.
The door armrests have been designed to provide extra support when cornering and the kneepads are integrated to help the driver maintain the proper position while cornering.
Standard interior comfort and convenience features include Nissan Intelligent Key™ with Push Button Start, power windows with one-touch auto up/down feature, power door locks with auto-lock feature, a center console box with a non-intrusive cover design, automatic climate control, rear window defroster with timer, two 12-volt power outlets, three cupholders, dual overhead map lights and a AM/FM/CD/AUX 4-speaker audio system with illuminated steering wheel-mounted controls.
The 370Z Touring model adds standard 4-way power adjustable heated leather-appointed and synthetic suede sport seats with adjustable lumbar support, 6CD Bose® audio system with eight speakers (includes dual subwoofer) and MP3/WMA playback, XM® Satellite Radio (XM® subscription required, sold separately), Bluetooth® Hands-free Phone System, HomeLink® Universal Transceiver, auto-dimming mirror, aluminum-trimmed pedals and retractable cargo cover.
Also available is the Nissan Hard Drive Navigation System with 7-inch VGA touch-sensitive display, 9.3GB HDD Music Box, USB connectivity and iPod connection, XM NavTraffic with Real-Time Traffic Information and XM NavWeather™ (XM subscription required, sold separately), automatic phonebook download (select phones), Bluetooth Streaming Audio and Rearview Monitor.
The Pure Performance of a 332-horsepower V6
All 2011 370Z Coupes utilize the fourth generation of Nissan's award-winning VQ-series V6. The 3.7-liter VQ37VHR engine with VVEL (Variable Valve Event and Lift) is rated at 332 horsepower @ 7,000 rpm and 270 lb-ft of torque @ 5,200 rpm.
Key to the outstanding performance is the VVEL system, which is able to optimize intake valve open/close movements, allowing the needed air to be sent promptly to the combustion chamber at the precisely optimized time. Since the VVEL system can adjust to open the valves slightly, it improves fuel efficiency by reducing camshaft friction and fuel waste.
It also provides cleaner emissions by allowing for quicker warm-up of the catalyst and by stabilizing combustion when the engine is cool.
The engine is backed by a choice of two advanced transmissions, both designed to improve driver performance. The close-ratio 6-speed manual includes an available synchronized downshift rev matching system, which allows drivers of any skill level to experience professional-like gear shift performance. The SynchroRev Match™ function automatically controls and adjusts engine speed when shifting to the exact speed of the next gear position, essentially "blipping" the throttle to smooth out any up/down shifts. This not only allows the driver to focus more on braking and steering, it improves the smoothness of gear shifts by reducing the typical "shock" when the clutch is engaged. The system can be deactivated with a button next to the shifter for drivers who prefer to shift on their own. The SynchroRev Match™ system is offered as part of the optional Sport Package.
The 370Z's 7-speed automatic with Downshift Rev Matching (DRM) and Adaptive Shift Control (ASC) is designed to offer quick, manual-like shifting when operated in manual mode with a target time of 0.5 seconds between shifts. Drivers can use the standard paddle shifters or the shift lever. With optimized torque converter lock-up logic, the 7-speed automatic feels very direct, like a manual transmission. The 7-speed's wide gear ratios offer improved fuel efficiency (versus a 5-speed automatic), while the Adaptive Shift Control is designed to adjust to the driver's driving style.
Fuel economy is rated at 19 mpg City/26 mpg Highway for the 7-speed automatic and 18 mpg City/ 26 mpg Highway for the 6-speed manual transmission.
The Z®'s suspension has been designed to offer reduced weight, improved strength and improved camber change and lateral displacement (versus the previous 350Z suspension). The double-wishbone front suspension uses lightweight forged aluminum arms, a lightweight rigid aluminum-alloy cradle, and hollow construction stabilizer bar. The independent multi-link rear suspension is also stiffer and lighter than the previous generation design, with the rear cradle entirely integrated into a single part (no welding). "High response" shock absorbers are utilized on each corner, with ride comfort enhanced through reduced shock friction.
The standard 370Z wheel and tire package features 18×8.0-inch front/18×9.0-inch 5-spoke lightweight aluminum-alloy wheels with P225/50R18 front/P245/45R18 rear Yokohama ADVAN Sport high performance summer tires. Also available as part of the optional Sport Package are 19-inch RAYS forged lightweight aluminum-alloy wheels with Bridgestone Potenza RE050A P245/40R19 front/P275/35R19 tires.
The Z®'s standard 4-wheel vented disc brake system includes Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA). The optional Sport Package includes Nissan Sport Brakes with large diameter 14.0-inch front and 13.8-inch rear rotors (versus 12.6-inch front/ rear standard rotors) with 4-piston front and 2-piston rear aluminum calipers.
Steering is provided by a vehicle-speed-sensitive power-assisted rack-and-pinion design that provides improved response. Unwanted steering kickback and vibrations are reduced through use of a solenoid valve that acts like a damper when there is a harsh impact load. Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) is standard.
The 2011 Nissan 370Z's long list of standard safety and security features includes the Nissan Advanced Air Bag System (AABS) with dual-stage supplemental front air bags with seat belt sensors and occupant classification sensor; front seat-mounted side impact supplemental air bags; roof-mounted side-impact air bags; seat belts with pretensioners and load limiters, Active Head Restraints, Zone Body Construction with front and rear crumple zones, Nissan Vehicle Immobilizer System, Vehicle Security System and Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).
Two Models, Two Options
The 2011 370Z model line-up consists of two models – 370Z and the 370Z Touring – and two available packages.
Along with the long list of standard features of the 370Z, the 370Z Touring adds heated leather-appointed and synthetic suede power seats, adjustable lumbar support, HomeLink® Universal Transceiver, Bluetooth® Hands-free Phone System, 8-speaker Bose® audio system, XM® Satellite Radio (XM® subscription required, sold separately), auto-dimming inside mirror, cargo cover and aluminum-trimmed pedals.
The optional Sport Package features 19-inch RAYS forged wheels and Bridgestone Potenza tires, aerodynamic front and rear spoiler, larger Nissan Sport Brakes, SynchroRev Match™ (6-speed manual transmission only) and Viscous Limited Slip Differential (VLSD).
The Nissan Hard Drive Navigation System features a 7-inch VGA touch-sensitive display, 9.3GB HDD Music Box, USB connectivity and iPod connection, XM NavTraffic with Real-Time Traffic Information and XM NavWeather™ (XM subscription required, sold separately), automatic phonebook download (select phones) and Bluetooth Streaming Audio. A RearView Monitor has been added to the Navigation package for 2011.


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Source: (A New Hope) Year: 1995 Collection: 1 Retail: $4.99 Assortment: Basic Figures Assortment Number: 69570/69577 UPC Number: 7628169577 Packaging Variations: Weapons and Accessories: |
Height: 1.8 meters Status: Smuggler, Pirate, Rebel Pilot Classification: Human Affiliation: Rebel Alliance Weapon of Choice: Blastech DL-44 Heavy Blaster Comments: Han Solo's extarordinary piloting skills, blaster-handling and daring have earned him the reputation as a top smuggler, Solo also owes much of his success to his ship, the stock freighter Millennium Falcon, which he won from associate Lando Calrissian in a cutthroat game of sabacc. The Falcon is widely regarded as one of the fastest ships in the galaxy thanks to the mechanical skills of Chewbacca, Solo's Wookiee companion. The team's services are sought after even by powerful crime lords like Jabba the Hutt, who put a bounty out on Solo after he jettisoned a cargo of Jabba's spice in an effort to flee an Imperial patrol.
Back To Basic Figures


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Did you miss the "Special Event: Enter the Conversation with Karen Armstrong" last week at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine? Well, you're in luck!
Our videographer, Sean McGinn, graciously captured this riveting conversation between the Very Rev. James A. Kowalski and Karen, which is posted on the Charter for Compassion YouTube channel. The discussion centers on religion and ethics in the modern world, and why we must place compassion at the heart of public discourse on religion and morality.
Karen Armstrong, author, scholar, and journalist, is among the world's foremost commentators on religious history and culture. She has written more than 20 books on faith and the major religions, studying what Islam, Judaism and Christianity have in common, and how our faiths shaped world history and drive current events. Her books include the bestselling A History of God and The Battle for God, as well as Buddha; Islam: A Short History; Muhammed: A Prophet for Our Time; Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths; and most recently Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life. In 2008 Dr. Armstrong, recipient of the TED prize, spearheaded the founding of The Charter for Compassion, a document that transcends religious, ideological, and national difference. It proclaims a principle embraced by every faith, and by every moral code.
Karen Armstrong is one of the heroes of the modern interfaith movement and endorsed Samir Selmanovic's recent book It's Really All About God, saying "Samir Selmanovic is asking the right questions at the right time, and refusing the consolations of certainty at a time when strident orthodoxies-atheist as well as religious-are perilously dividing us."
The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine is a "house of prayer for all people." Faith House partnered with the Cathedral and GreenFaith last year to host SUSTAIN with Bill McKibben. Bowie Snodgrass is a member of the Congregation of St. Saviour at the Cathedral and her husband, George Mathew, is the Artistic Director of the New Year's Concert for Peace at the Cathedral.


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Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
The New Mexico State Police department is undertaking its annual 100 Days and Nights of Summer, but local officers would like to be able to reduce more than just alcohol-related incidents.
"It's not just about drunk driving," said Lt. Eric Garcia, public information officer for the state police. "It's about proper driving for our residents."
The program, which started last Friday, runs through Sept. 4.
Prior to the inaugural year of the program, there were 136 fatal vehicle crashes in the state during June, July and August — 56 of them involving alcohol, according to a press release from the state.
In 2009, those numbers dropped to 79 accidents with 33 involving alcohol.
"In recent years, we've thrown everything we have at combating drunk driving and making New Mexico roads safer, and the 100 Days and Nights of Summer has proven to be one of our most effective tools," Gov. Bill Richardson said in the release.
Garcia said extra enforcement is positioned throughout the state's roads, with emphasis on recreational areas and other areas that may have a history of traffic incidents.
"We are pinning down where the main concerns are at for each one of our counties," Garcia said. "If there's an interest of concern between, let's say, Fort Sumner and Clovis, we're going to go saturate that area. If there's concern between Clovis and Tucumcari, we're going to saturate that area."
The program will be accompanied by a new media campaign that includes print materials, billboards, television and radio ads that focus on the efforts of law enforcement.
The program is paid for by the New Mexico Department of Transportation with money from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Garcia said the state police would like to be able to use money on overlapping shifts and overtime to take a similar approach year-round, but it's "unfortunately" not financially feasible, even in years where there isn't a budget shortfall.


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Fear, insecurity, suffering and refuge
We are constantly searching for security because we are fearful.
We are fearful because we search for security
instead of giving ourselves up to the insecurity that life is:
if we gave ourselves up to insecurity we would feel secure,
for we would have no fear of insecurity.
Escaping insecurity, instead, implies and begets fear:
the more we escape, the more we affirm that there is something to fear;
the more we affirm there is something to fear, the more we fear.
Thus, we search for security because we fear
and we fear because we search for security.
Continue reading "Elias Capriles – Fear, insecurity and suffering"


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Mobilizing enterprise applications for the consumerization of IT
The rise of the mobile device in the enterprise is changing the way users access and share information at work, as well as how developers are creating and deploying applications.
This E-Guide explores the effect of IT consumerization on software development, service-oriented architecture (SOA) and the enterprise as a whole. Discover how organizations are rethinking application development and moving towards enterprise-wide mobile cloud applications.


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According to today's employment report, the labor market continued modest improvement in November. The unemployment rate edged down to 7.7 percent and has now remained below 8 percent for three consecutive months. Payroll employment increased by 146,000 jobs, about the same monthly pace recorded over 2012 as a whole, but the gain in employment in the previous two months was revised down by a total of 49,000. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Hurricane Sandy had little effect on employment estimates despite its considerable impact on coastal areas. (These figures do not reflect the anticipated update to the payroll data, which will be official in February and is expected to show that the level of employment was 386,000 jobs higher in March 2012 than previously reported.)
As the year draws to a close, policymakers and the media have their sights fixed on the "fiscal cliff," the federally mandated set of cuts in spending and increases in taxes scheduled to go into effect at the beginning of 2013. Most economic observers agree that, unchecked, this precipitous drop in government expenditures and spike in taxes could send the economy back into recession. What has not received as much attention is that a given level of deficit reduction can be achieved with very different impacts on employment.
In this month's jobs analysis, The Hamilton Project focuses on how alternative approaches to confronting the fiscal cliff are projected to impact the nation's employment situation in the coming year. We also continue to explore the "jobs gap," or the number of jobs that the U.S. economy needs to create in order to return to pre-recession employment levels.
The Effect of the Fiscal Cliff on Job Growth
A wide range of forecasters, including the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Moody's, and Macroeconomic Advisers, project that the wholesale implementation of tax increases and spending cuts scheduled to take place at the year's end would sharply reduce employment. What does this mean from a practical standpoint? If all the policies that compose the fiscal cliff fully go into effect, the job losses would more than erase all of the gains we have made in returning to full employment, as measured by the jobs gap detailed in the next section, since the start of the recovery.
The CBO recently published estimates of just how many jobs may be lost by the end of 2013, depending on actions policymakers take to resolve the fiscal cliff. For example:
- If the automatic cuts to the discretionary defense budget go forward as planned, the nation would have 400,000 fewer jobs this time next year, compared to if the defense budget remains intact.
- The mandatory reductions in the nondefense discretionary budget, combined with the restructuring of Medicare payment rates for physicians, would also reduce the number of jobs in the United States by about 400,000 by the end of 2013.
Of course, if cutting spending reduces employment, then avoiding these cuts would result in a greater number of jobs. The chart below provides estimates of how many additional jobs would exist in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2013 if policymakers eliminate various provisions of the mandatory spending cuts and tax increases that are elements of the fiscal cliff.
If lawmakers do away with the defense and non-defense discretionary budget cuts, and extend the Bush-era tax rates—a suite of policies known as the "alternative fiscal scenario"—the country would have about 2.7 million more jobs at the end of next year.
The payroll-tax holiday and extended unemployment insurance (UI) benefits, two policies that were enacted during the recovery, are also set to expire at the end of this year. The former is a temporary reduction in the payroll tax that gives consumers more spending money, which stimulates the economy. The latter extends the period that an unemployed worker can claim unemployment benefits.
If policymakers do not implement the alternative fiscal scenario (either in part or in whole) and do not extend the reduction in the payroll tax and emergency unemployment benefits, the CBO estimates that there would be 3.4 million fewer jobs in the fourth quarter of 2013, one year from now, compared to outcomes under the alternative fiscal scenario.
As the White House and Congress go about the necessary task of reducing the deficit as part of a fiscal cliff deal, there are opportunities to choose approaches that are less harmful to the already weak labor market. The chart below is taken from a recent CBO analysis and shows how many jobs would be saved for every $1 million of mandated spending cuts or tax increases policymakers choose to eliminate as part of a budget deal. For instance:
- Every $1 million of the defense budget that is exempted from mandatory cuts preserves, on average, seven jobs.
- Every $1 million of income tax increases avoided would preserve three jobs.
When it comes to preserving jobs, not all deficit-reducing policies have the same effect. For example, letting the Bush-era tax rates expire saves about half as many jobs as a dollar-for-dollar reduction to the deficit through eliminating automatic cuts to discretionary spending. With the currently high unemployment rate, near-term employment impacts are a critical consideration in choosing the best way to confront the nation's structural deficit problems.
The November Jobs Gap
As of November, our nation faces a "jobs gap" of 11.1 million jobs. The chart below shows how the jobs gap has evolved since the start of the Great Recession in December 2007, and how long it will take to close under different assumptions of job growth. The solid line shows the net number of jobs lost since the Great Recession began. The broken lines track how long it will take to close the jobs gap under alternative assumptions about the rate of job creation going forward.
If the economy adds about 208,000 jobs per month, which was the average monthly rate for the best year of job creation in the 2000s, then it will take until August 2020—a little less than eight years—to close the jobs gap. Given a more optimistic rate of 321,000 jobs per month, which was the average monthly rate of the best year of job creation in the 1990s, the economy will reach pre-recession employment levels by December 2016—not for another four years. Again, these figures do not reflect the anticipated update to the payroll data due in February, which may reduce the actual job gap. You can also try out our interactive jobs gap calculator by clicking here and view the jobs gap chart for each state here.
As these last few years have shown, it has taken extraordinary and unprecedented efforts by the President, Congress, and the Federal Reserve Board to steer the economy along the road to recovery in the wake of the Great Recession. Once again, lawmakers are tasked with resolving a crisis, this time one borne of risks associated with large budget deficits and debt, whose resolution will have profound short- and long-term implications for the country. However, with the labor market still weak, the most economically sound approach is to combine credible deficit reduction that takes full effect when the economy is on more sound footing with continued support of the economy in the near term.
If deficit reduction is enacted without also considering its impact on employment, we risk reversing all of the hard-fought gains in the labor market over the past three years. However, by keeping an eye on jobs—in addition to deficits—it is possible to find a balanced approach that advances the nation's interests on both fronts.


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On the way to Pastoria City, Ash and his friends meet Tyler and his Piplup, Pippy. The pair is hot on the trail of a Yanma; Tyler's only been a Trainer for a week, but he's already spent three days trying to catch that Yanma! Ash and the gang help Tyler track the Yanma down, and Pippy battles it to wear it down. Now Tyler is ready to throw his Poké Ball and complete the capture—except Team Rocket slips in, nabs Yanma, and makes a quick getaway! Unable to find Team Rocket, our heroes can only cheer Tyler up and encourage him to find another Yanma to catch.
Team Rocket sends the purloined Yanma to Team Rocket headquarters, eagerly anticipating a reward from the Boss. But Team Rocket already has plenty of Yanma, so Giovanni sends it back without comment. Team Rocket thinks the Boss is just being generous, so Jessie takes charge of their new Yanma and sets out to catch another Yanma for Giovanni. It's not long before Team Rocket crosses paths with Tyler, who's just found another wild Yanma.
Jessie sends out her new Yanma, which evolves into a surprisingly tough Yanmega. Team Rocket is delighted by Yanmega's powerful SonicBoom and Ancient Power moves, except the fight with Tyler and Ash scares off the wild Yanma. Team Rocket might not have won this round, but Tyler is dismayed at losing out on another Yanma and Ash and his friends have to urge him not to give up. So when Tyler finds another Yanma and Team Rocket again shows up to spoil the show, Ash has Buizel and Pikachu put Team Rocket in their place. At last, Tyler catches a Yanma without any further interruption, and our heroes congratulate him before they resume their trip to Pastoria City.


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B.C. has recorded 27 new cases of COVID-19 infection, including an outbreak of 13 confirmed cases on Haida Gwaii.
"Of the 13 people who have tested positive, one has recovered and 12 are active cases," provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said in a statement July 24. "At this time the cases are all local residents. While the initial source of transmission is still being investigated, the cases are all epidemiologically linked. Some are related to residents who had recently travelled off island, and others are from exposure to known cases."
With daily cases having jumped to near 30 in the past week, the B.C. Centre for Disease Control reports that a clothing store in Kelowna has been added to prevention measures in the Okanagan, where parties and gatherings have caused the region's case count to go up.
There has been one additional coronavirus-related death, bringing B.C.'s total in the pandemic to 191. One active health care facility outbreak remains, at Holy Family Hospital long-term care facility in Vancouver.
RELATED: B.C. struggles with local food production in pandemic
RELATED: Premier wants parents to have Plan B for fall schooling
A new public health order is coming by next week to limit the number of people who can stay at or visit short-term rental accommodations or boat rentals.
"Similar to the case in restaurants, the number of people will be determined by the size of the space to ensure safe social interactions for everyone," Henry said. "This weekend, be mindful of where you are going and who you are seeing, assess your own risks and take steps to protect yourself and those you care for most."
The Centre for Disease Control is updating a list of current outbreaks in each health authority here.
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.


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Barrett-Jackson Announces Highlights For Upcoming 42nd Annual Scottsdale Auction
The World's Greatest Collector Car Auctions™ Revs-Up for Impressive Offerings at Flagship Event
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – (December 6, 2012) – Barrett-Jackson, The World's Greatest Collector Car Auctions™ is excited to announce the return of the company's flagship Scottsdale auction, taking place January 13-20, 2013 at WestWorld of Scottsdale. Hundreds of thousands of spectators and collectors, from all around the world, are expected to participate in the world-class automotive lifestyle event and witness over 1,000 Classics, Exotics, Muscle Cars, Hot Rods, Resto-Mods and Contemporary Collectibles as they cross the auction block at no reserve.
The 2013 auction marks the return of the company's impressive 5000 Series, which includes the Salon Collection and features approximately 50 of the world's most sought-after, unique and valuable automobiles. Ranging from elite prototypes, muscle cars to classics, these prestigious vehicles have been hand-selected to sell on Saturday, January 19th beginning at approximately 5:00pm. More information on these eclectic vehicles can be found at SalonCollection.com.
In addition to the Salon Collection, Barrett-Jackson will honor one of the world's greatest automotive icons, Carroll Shelby, by auctioning off nearly 30 Shelby automobiles at No Reserve. Ranging from a stellar 1965 GT350 (lot #5023) previously owned by Ford, to a 2012 GT500 50th Anniversary Super Snake (lot #1321) to the rarest Shelby Mustang in existence, "The Green Hornet," (lot #5022) collectors from all over the world are eagerly waiting for the chance to bid on these legendary vehicles.
Barrett-Jackson will also offer a variety of other vehicles that carry Hollywood history, including the 1966 Original #1 Batmobile (lot #5037) by renowned customizer, George Barris, as well as Clark Gable's 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Coupe (lot #5001) and a 1919 Pierce Arrow (lot #5028) built for the famous silent movie comedian Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle.
"Barrett-Jackson's Scottsdale auction is unlike any other automotive event in the world," said Craig Jackson, Chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. "With the caliber of vehicles crossing our auction block this year, I believe this could be the greatest selection of cars ever sold at one auction in history. We're looking forward to watching the excitement unfold."
As part of the week-long festivities, the company will host a "Barrett-Jackson Night" at the Pavilions on January 12th from 4:00pm to 7:00pm in addition to the Barrett-Jackson's Opening Night Gala on Monday, January 14th at 7:00pm. Guests can enjoy cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, Fashions by Neiman Marcus, live music, and celebrity sightings, while preparing to watch world-class vehicles.
"We've put together a quality collection of some of the most unique and interesting vehicles for our upcoming Scottsdale auction," said Steve Davis, President of Barrett-Jackson. "We anticipate that the diverse offering is sure to bring excitement to every level of enthusiast."
SPEED will broadcast nearly 40 hours of live, high-definition TV coverage of the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction from Tuesday – Sunday, January 15 – 20. Tuesday through Thursday the auction will be broadcasted from 5:00pm to 10:00pm MST, Friday and Saturday from 12:00pm to 10:00pm MST and Sunday 12:00pm to 4:00pm MST.
For more information, up-to-date news and to purchase tickets, please visit Barrett-Jackson.com and SalonCollection.com.
About The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company
Established in 1971 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz., Barrett-Jackson specializes in providing products and services to classic and collector car owners, astute collectors and automotive enthusiasts around the world. The company produces "The World's Greatest Collector Car Auctions™" in Scottsdale, Ariz., Palm Beach, Fla., Las Vegas, Nev. and Orange County, Calif. Barrett-Jackson also endorses a one-of-a-kind collector car insurance offering for collector vehicles and other valued belongings. For more information about Barrett-Jackson, visit www.barrett-jackson.com or call (480) 421-6694.
Each description contained herein is provided by the consignor for the purpose of describing the item offered for sale. The accuracy of a description is the responsibility of the consignor and Barrett-Jackson is not responsible for any errors contained in a description or for the failure of a consignor to produce any item for sale. Please conduct your own inspection before making a purchase and refer to the Barrett- Jackson website for complete terms and conditions of sale.
# # #
Media Contacts:
Sanaz Marbley/Allyson Molina, JMPR
(818) 992-4353
Stacy Pearson/Tiffany Shultz
Up Agency
(602) 577-6888


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MTB's cranks usually have a 42 or 44T where as Road bikes range up to 53T.
So far I am under a impression that more tooth, means more speed. Same goes for cassettes, lesser the tooth more the speed.
But, nothing is as it seems, I want to know what are bad things I expect when I take this move? Is it that bad, that it would be simply better to forget about it and move on?
My main intention is to create a super fast MTB, where possible.
Please Note: I am not a expert on crank & cassette


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Funniest App Store Updates
10 Of The Most Hilariously Written App Updates Ever
App updates: they're necessary, sometimes time-consuming, but can they be fun? There are a number of app developers who clearly think so. In the past few years, "app release notes" as they're technically called, have become something of an art form.
It seems as though creative app release notes started with bored software engineers who didn't expect anyone to ever read their updates, but have now evolved into a necessary part of the app's user experience. In fact, by the looks of some of these updates, I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't some highly under-stimulated copywriters who'd rather be working on their novels penning these mini-masterpieces.
Check out some of the funniest app release notes below:
Citymapper's Apology For Scheduling All Your Routes In The Year 2149
If there isn't actually widespread hoverboard-use by 2149, I am going to be PISSED (from beyond the grave). And by "hoverboard" I do not mean those bogus handle-less Segway things.
Citymapper's Ode To Berlin
Citymapper bin ein Berliner!
Transit App's Very Colorful Release Note
Transit app knows that, as a commuter, you're hurting, and Transit app cares.
Spotify's 'Fictitious' Updates
Spotify has a running gag of "fictitious" updates in their release notes. Here are a couple other recent ones:
"Fictitious: This app is now available in three fruit flavors. (Berry Surprise is still quite buggy)."
"Fictitious: This app is a gas at room temperature."
"Fictitious: This app is made from the finest Italian leather."
"Peter", Medium's App Update Scapegoat
Medium's running gag is to blame bugs and issues on someone named "Peter." Damn it, Peter.
Medium's "Phone Call With Grandma" App Update Dialogue
See, now here's where it starts to get real weird.
Medium's 'Star Wars' Themed App Update
And you're just like "what am I even reading anymore?"
Tumblr's Release Note Written As A 'Friends' Synopsis
I have no idea what's new with the app, but I am entertained.
Medium's Meta Release Note
This is just a copy and pasted Slack conversation about writing the release note!!! Medium, what are you doing!?
The Infamous 'David Karp' Tumblr Release Note
Medium and Tumblr were really neck and neck there for a while, but Tumblr pretty much put the nail in the coffin of creative app release notes with this one. This is just me, but I think Tumblr's David Karp may be the defining literary figure of this century.


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I was wondering, if while doing port scanning on subnets can this type of traffic be detected? First, can this type of traffic be detected by the potential "victims" PC that you scanning. Second, more importantly, can it be detected by say Optimum Online or the Fed. I know a port scanner takes the range of IPs specified and probes each port to find one that is listening or "open". This sounds like it could generate a whole 5HI7 load of traffic comming from your IP. Is there someone out there watching these lines for this type of traffic?
I would be naive to think that there is nobody watching? This would be a perfect place for an anti-hacking element to find potential hackers.


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Guide to the Empire Mine State Historic Park Collection
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Collection Overview
Table of contents
The Empire Mine State Historic Park Collection contains correspondence, financial and administrative material, mining records, employee records, and vendor material from the Empire Mine located in Grass Valley, California, and from other mines located throughout Nevada County, California. Mines and mining corporations documented in this collection include Empire Mine, North Star Mine, Empire Star Mines Company, Ltd., Newmont Mining Corporation, Champion Mine, Gaston Ridge Mine, Golden Center Mine, Lava Cap Gold Mine, Pennsylvania Mine, Twin River Consolidated Mining Company, Yuba Drift Mining Company, and Zeibright Mine. Also included in this collection are personal papers of William Bourn, Jr., Phil Keast, Fred W. Nobs, George W. Starr, and Robert H. Svendsen. These individuals were either owners or employees of one or more of the above listed mines and mining corporations. The records in this collection cover the years 1866 to 1985 with the bulk of the material ranging from 1900 to 1960.
Grass Valley was once the richest gold mining district in California. The largest and most productive mining operations in the region were the Empire, North Star, and Idaho-Maryland mines. From 1900-1925 the Empire Mine, under the direction of George W. Starr, and the North Star Mine, under the direction of James D. Hague and A. D. Foote, produced most of the gold in all of Nevada County, California. George W. Starr wrote in a 1900 edition of Mining and Science Press, "In the history of gold mining in California the Empire stands preeminent, not alone for its wealth but for what the mine, above all others, has given in the way of example and earnest, well-applied endeavor. It is the pioneer in deep mining and the first to regard Grass Valley mining a legitimate business, controlled by the same laws and conditions as should govern a well-managed manufacturing establishment."
79 cubic feet
Property rights reside with the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Parks Archives.
The collection is open for research. Empire Star Mines Company, Ltd., employee records located in Box 9, Folders 23-24, 32, and 42 through Box 10, Folder 4 are permanently restricted.
Collection Overview
Collection Details
Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Organizational History
Scope and Content of Collection
Material Cataloged Separately
Indexing Terms
Collection Contents
Empire Mine, 1866-1984.
Accounting Records, 1871-1951.
Administrative Records, 1895-1944.
Employee Records, 1908-1923 and undated.
Legal Records, 1901-1920 and undated.
Mining Records, 1866-1959 and undated.
Topical Files, 1898-1984 and undated.
Empire Star Mines Company, Ltd., 1905-1977.
Accounting Records, 1905-1956 and undated.
Administrative Records, 1911-1977 and undated.
Employee Records, 1928-1963.
Legal Records, 1936-1975 and undated.
Mining Records, 1929-1954.
Other Mines and Mining Company Records, 1873-1984 and undated.
Banner and Harmony Mines, undated.
Browns Valley Mine, 1938-1963 and undated.
Bullion Mine, 1935.
Champion Mine, 1891-1920 and undated.
Forest Mine, 1912-1967 and undated.
Franco-Nevada Mining Corp., Inc., 1984.
Gaston Ridge Mine, 1893-1921 and undated.
Golden Center Mine, 1903-1952 and undated.
Golden Dream Mine, undated.
Gray Rock Mining Company, 1938-1939.
Idaho-Maryland Mines Corp., 1952.
Idarado Mining Company, 1939-1940.
Lava Cap Gold Mining Corp., 1936-1980 and undated.
Massachusetts Hill Mining Company, 1888-1894 and undated.
Middlefork Gold Mining Company, 1931-1942.
Murchie Gold Mine, 1927-1937 and undated.
Newmont Mining Corporation, 1925-1984 and undated.
New Verde Mines Company, 1958-1965.
North Star Mine and North Star Mining Company, 1887-1951 and undated.
Pennsylvania Mine, 1913-1940.
Plumbago Gold Mine Company, 1922-1925.
Twin River Consolidated Mining Company, 1873-1912.
Union Hill Mines, 1915-1916.
Yuba Drift Mining Company, 1903-1905 and undated.
Zeibright Mine, 1920-1956 and undated.
Personal Papers, 1883-1985 and undated.
William Bourn, Jr., 1902-1928.
Phil Keast, 1926-1981 and undated.
Fred W. Nobs, 1923-1955 and undated.
George W. Starr, 1883-1931 and undated.
Robert H. Svendsen, 1925-1985 and undated.
Photographic Material, 1929-1964 and undated.
Reference Files, 1893-1972.
Vendor Material, 1893-1982.
Catalogs, 1899-1982 and undated.
Correspondence, 1895-1967.
Data Books and Data Sheets, 1918-1959 and undated.
Handbooks, 1935-1959 and undated.
Handbooks, 1935-1959 and undated.
Instructions, 1906-1966.
Parts/Price Lists, 1900-1970 and undated.
Product Information, 1948-1959 and undated.
Product Samples, 1923 and undated.
Promotional Materials, 1893-1970 and undated.
Oversize Material.
Restricted Material.


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Birthday: July 19th, 1976 Place of Birth: London, England, UK
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (born 19 July 1976) is an English actor. He first performed at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park in Shakespearean productions and made his West End debut in Richard Eyre's revival of Hedda Gabler in 2005. Since then, he has starred in the Royal National Theatre productions After the Dance (2010) and Frankenstein (2011). In 2015, he played the title role in Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre.
His television work includes appearances in Silent Witness (2002) and Fortysomething (2003) before playing Stephen Hawking in the television film Hawking (2004). He has starred as Sherlock Holmes in the series Sherlock since 2010. He has also headlined Tom Stoppard's adaptation of Parade's End (2012), The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses (2016) and Patrick Melrose (2018). In film, he has starred in Amazing Grace (2006), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), 12 Years a Slave (2013), The Fifth Estate (2013), and The Imitation Game (2014). He also made a brief appearance in 1917 (2019). From 2012 to 2014, through voice and motion capture, he played the characters of Smaug and the Necromancer in The Hobbit film series. In superhero films set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he has played Dr Stephen Strange in Doctor Strange (2016), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
He has received numerous accolades, including the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for Frankenstein, and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for Sherlock. His performance in The Imitation Game earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. In 2015, he was appointed a CBE in the 2015 Birthday Honours for services to the performing arts and to charity.
Description above is from the Wikipedia article Benedict Cumberbatch, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.


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· The Chile and Singapore Free Trade Agreements contain provisions
allowing the temporary entry of business professionals into the other party, to
facilitate trade in services.
· Since services now account for
65% of the U.S. economy and 28% of the value of U.S. exports, the international mobility of business professionals –
particularly as employees providing services – has become an increasingly important aspect
of competitive markets for suppliers and consumers alike. Facilitating the
movement of professionals allows trade partners to more efficiently provide each other with
services such as architecture, engineering, consulting, and
· TPA establishes that the
principal negotiating objective regarding trade in services is to reduce or eliminate barriers to international trade in services.
Each trade negotiation the United States enters, like Chile and Singapore, is approached
individually to determine if the inclusion of a temporary entry chapter will benefit U.S. trade
in services and, if so, whether a section on temporary entry of professionals is needed in
the agreement.
· Pursuant to the agreements with
Chile and Singapore, the movement of Chilean and Singaporean professionals in the United States will be provided by
the H-1B1 visa.
· The number of U.S. professionals
allowed entry into Chile and Singapore is not limited under these FTAs, while the number of Chilean professionals in the
United States is limited to 1400 and the number of Singaporean professionals to
· The United States will be able to
collect fees for professionals allowed entry. Both agreements have language that requires Parties to set fees so that
they do not "unduly impair or delay trade in goods or services."
· The agreements permit the United
States to require attestations modeled after core elements of the Labor Condition Application of the current U.S.
H-1B visa program to certify that the employer sponsoring an applicant will:
- Pay the prevailing wage or higher
- Notify employees of intent to hire a foreign worker
- Provide a safe working environment
- Certify there is no strike or lockout in place at the
· Ensures that the Chile and
Singapore professionals categories come under the H-1B umbrella, as H-1B1.
· Clarifies that the Chile and
Singapore H-1B1 professionals categories are capped, and that these individuals will count under the overall H-1B program
· Ensures that the same level fees
can be charged for H-1B and H-1B1 visas.
· Confirms that the attestation
requirements are modeled on the Labor Condition Application provisions in the H-1B program, allowing a party to
require certification of compliance with a party's labor and immigration laws prior to
· Requires that, similar to the
H-1B program, a new attestation must be filed every 3 years for each H-1B1 professional.
· Mandates that after 5 renewals,
any subsequent renewal for an H-1B1 professional will count against the overall H-1B cap.
· Requires all Singaporean and
Chilean H-1B1 professionals to overcome the presumption of immigrant intent, which is a higher threshold than
H-1B visa holders meet.
· Provides important protections
regarding labor disputes by allowing the United States to deny temporary entry to a Chilean or Singaporean business person
whose activities in the United States require employment authorization, if admission
might interfere with an ongoing labor dispute.
· Clarify that "specialty
occupation" in the H-1B1 program will be interpreted in a manner similar to the way the term "specialty occupation" is defined in
the H-1B statute.
· Acknowledge that with sections of
the H-1B program set to expire in September 2003, if the Congress extends or modifies provisions of the H-1B program,
the Congress may make corresponding modifications to the amendments to the
Immigration and Nationality Act made by the implementing bills, to the extent consistent with
the obligations of the United States under these free trade


text:
Laws and regulations create a variety of risks for camp directors to manage. The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) presents an interesting risk management challenge. The Act was passed in 1990 to give protection against discrimination to individuals with disabilities. ADA is similar to other national civil rights acts, which prohibited discrimination based upon race, sex, national origin, age, and religion. Recently, some camp professionals raised questions about camps and Title III of ADA as part of the risk identification step in the risk management process.
The ADA has several Titles, or Sections, which include standards for removing barriers for individuals with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodations, public services, and telecommunications. Title III of The Americans With Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by public accommodations and commercial facilities. The law requires that commercial facilities and places offering accommodations to the public be designed, constructed, and altered in compliance with the accessibility standards established by the Act.
Does Title III of The Americans With Disabilities Act Apply to Camps and Conference Centers?
Maybe. Help determining if your camp is subject to Title III of the ADA lies in the definition of Public Accommodations and Commercial Facilities.
The Act includes examples of entities covered by Title III including an inn, motel, hotel, or other place of lodging (emphasis added); a park, zoo, amusement park, or other place of recreation (emphasis added); a nursery, elementary, secondary, or private school, or other place of education (emphasis added); a day care center, or other social service establishment (emphasis added); a gym, health spa, golf course, or other place of exercise or recreation (emphasis added).
Camp businesses, which combine an entity named in the Act, such as private school and camp, or day care and camp, and camps leasing their facilities to groups for conferences and meetings, would appear to be included under Title III without question.
While the ADA does not specifically include camps and conference centers in their definition of Public Accommodations and Commercial Facilities, the omnibus language "or other" in the Act, seems to clear up any confusion. However, religious organizations are exempt from Title III requirements.
If Your Camp and Conference Center Meets the Definition of Title III, What Are Your Obligations?
The obligations are to remove barriers to the use of facilities and to provide auxiliary aids or services for participants with disabilities. These duties are equally the responsibility of the landlord and tenant. An interesting problem develops when a Title III exempt religious organization leases its facilities to a public entity, like a school or a private entity, such as a local business. Since the ADA makes compliance equally the duty of the landlord or tenant, religious organizations who don't comply with Title III may find their market for rental groups diminished. Many public schools and other organizations have operations guidelines, which prohibit leasing of facilities that are not accessible to persons with disabilities. So, even though not required to comply with Title III, religious organizations voluntarily complying may find themselves in an advantageous rental situation, if that is desirable.
Auxiliary aids and services are required by ADA to ensure effective communication — for example, pertaining to individuals with hearing or vision impairment, aids and services must include assistive-listening devices, large-print materials, and sign language interpreters. Other examples of safety equipment designed to remove barriers to the use of facilities include a strobe light fire alarm in a room occupied by a hearing-impaired person or a vibrating bed fire alarm in a room occupied by someone with vision impairment.
There is a limitation on these requirements, however. ADA does not require the removal of barriers or the provision of any auxiliary aid that would result in an undue burden or in a fundamental alteration in the nature of the goods or services provided by a public accommodation. Likewise, removal of "barriers" is only necessary when it is readily achievable. Readily achievable is defined in the Act to mean "easily accomplishable and able to be carried out without much difficulty or expense."
If your camp meets the criteria of public accommodation — or commercial facility under Title III — you would also be obliged to make all newly constructed facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. Likewise, all alterations to a facility that could affect the usability of the facility must be made accessible. However, if the cost of the additional alteration to enhance accessibility is more than 20 percent of the cost of the original alteration, they are not required. State and local building codes and local building inspectors are responsible for implementing these aspects of the Act.
It is illegal to deny participation in your camp program and access to your facilities to an individual with a disability covered by ADA. However, ADA does allow public accommodations to take safety factors into consideration when providing services to individuals with disabilities. The ADA permits exclusion of a person with a disability, who poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others. The threat must be based upon objective safety standards not capable of being reduced or managed easily by appropriate changes in your policies or procedures. ADA's standards specify that these modifications to procedures and policies be "easily accomplishable and able to be carried out without much difficulty or expense."
Can My Camp be Sued Over Actual or Alleged Violations of Title III of the ADA?
Yes. An individual with a disability can sue a business when that individual believes discrimination is about to occur. Private individuals may also bring lawsuits and obtain court orders to stop discrimination they believe is already taking place.
Individuals may also file complaints with the Attorney General who can bring suits of general public interest, or where a "pattern of discrimination" is alleged. In these instances, monetary damages and civil penalties may be imposed. Civil penalties may not exceed $50,000 for a first violation or $100,000 for a subsequent violation.
How Does My Camp Insurance Program Respond to an ADA Title III Suit?
The risk of financial loss (fines, attorney's fees, cost of reasonable modifications to accommodate individuals with disabilities, etc.) is probably not covered (transferred) by a typical camp insurance program.
General liability insurance responds to liability for bodily injury, damage to property of others, and personal and advertising injury liability (i.e., libel, slander, false arrest, unlawful imprisonment, invasion of the right of private occupancy, and certain infringement in advertising your camp's goods and services) and would not respond to an allegation of discrimination. Likewise, the available camp directors' professional liability endorsements are either not designed to respond to claims of discrimination, or specifically exclude liability arising out of the ADA.
Nonprofit directors' and officers' liability insurance, including employment practices liability, is designed to respond to wrongful acts and typically respond to some discriminatory acts in connection with employment. Unfortunately, because nonprofit directors' and officers' policies don't have standardized language, it is impossible to generalize about coverage for the ADA Title III violations. However, there is a pattern among directors' and officers' underwriters to exclude coverage.
Camp Obligations
Title III of The Americans With Disabilities Act presents certain risks to camps, which may not have been previously identified in your risk management plan. Camps appear to be subject to Title III requirements, although religiously affiliated camps are exempt. Under these circumstances, your camp has certain obligations to remove barriers to the use of your facilities and include persons with disabilities in your programs. There are some limitations on these requirements; among them is a threat to health and safety. Recognize, in addition, that the risk of financial loss from noncompliance with Title III of the ADA, includes expenses and civil penalties, which may not be adequately insured (transferred) by a typical camp insurance program.
Necessary Steps
Before next summer, take some time to consider whether your camp business qualifies as a Public Accommodation or Commercial Facility under the law. Depending upon your conclusions, take the necessary steps to avoid and reduce the risk of financial loss from non-compliance with the law.
If you want more information, the U.S. Department of Justice has considerable information about Title III of The Americans with Disabilities Act on the Internet through just about any search engine. An ADA Title III Compliance Checklist is also available from the Job Accommodation Network, 800-526-7234 (V/TTY), or online at www.jan.wvu.edu.
Originally published in the 2004 Winter issue of The CampLine.